Treatment of Plantar Fasciitis: a rapid review for patient decision aid
Systematic review
|Published
In this rapid review, the purpose was to evaluate the knowledge base for treatments for adults with plantar fasciitis. The results will be used in the plantar fasciitis consultation tool.
Key message
Plantar fasciitis, also often referred to as plantar heel pain, is one of the most common foot disorders and is characterized by pain in the plantar fascia. This can lead to functional impairment and reduced quality of life. Different treatment options have been proposed for adults with plantar fasciitis.
We conducted a rapid review (a type of systematic review that is based on a simplified methodology) and investigated the effects of selected treatment options for people with plantar fasciitis. We searched for relevant systematic reviews in Epistemonikos and Cochrane Library. We assessed the methodological quality of the reviews and analyzed their findings.
We included three systematic reviews published in 2023. We found that all three had moderate methodological quality. The systematic reviews included 46 primary studies concerning our prioritized treatments. The results with respect to pain and physical function show that:
- Extracorporeal shockwave therapy probably reduces pain somewhat compared with control.
- Physiotherapy and assistive devices (for example, taping and splints) may provide little or no pain reduction compared with control.
- The evidence for the effect of pharmacological treatments (for example botulinum toxin and steroid injections) and surgical procedures is uncertain, both with respect to pain and physical function.
Some treatment options appear promising, such as extracorporeal shockwave therapy. However, many studies on treatments for plantar fasciitis have methodological weaknesses and small sample sizes. It is possible that well‑conducted studies could change the conclusions of this systematic review.